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Possible Lupus?

Hello! I have had a couple years worth of "strange" symptoms that have been called "idiopathic" and was diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis about 6-7 years ago when my thyroid antibody test came back >1200 and normal was like 0-30

Neutropenia
Elevated Bilirubin
Positive ANA
Severe hand "dermatitis" that has some raised areas, others crack and bleed (have injections with Kenalog to fingers 2-3x/year which helps)
Intermittent redness of the nose and cheeks (that I myself have called Rosacea)
mild aching joints, mostly fingers and sometimes wrist
Low complement levels once
intermittent low grade fevers
could easily sleep 12 hours per night if I could
bruise VERY easily
"speckled red spots"...very small on lower leg and flat red spot on calf for more than 3 months now(first thought it was an insect bite)
AND NOW..................fingernail bed pitting on 5 of 10 fingernails
AND (also new and GONE NOW....thanks goodness) bilateral chin numbness!
Ideas? I work as an RN and my hands have really been the worst issue of all because I bleed on things suddenly and my fingers burn really bad sometimes.
Thanks

Of course, most of us here know how frustrating it can be to feel sick and have so many medical issues without knowing what's wrong.

Obviously, I don't know what's going on with your health, but many of your symptoms are similar to those of us "Lupies." I hope you are working with a good Rheumatologist to explore possible diagnosis, including Lupus.

I have never seen a rheumatologist........I did see a neuro-opthamologist (for an abnormal optic nerve problem that my reg eye doc thought was glaucoma, and then the gluaucoma doc sent me to the neuroopth) about 2 years ago who suspected I had Lupus, but didn't confirm at the time with blood work.

Lee, do you know how positive your ANA was, and if any other antibody tests were done? A lot of your symptoms sound like lupus, but as you probably know, lupus can masquerade as a dozen different diseases. It sounds like you really need to have some additional tests and follow up work done.

Hi, Lee Anne

Although an ANA of 1:160 is considered positive, it isn't a very high titer such as many lupus patients have. And many people with Hashimoto's will have a positive ANA because Hashimoto's is an auto-immune disorder. But if it was tested two years ago, and you are having increased or different symptoms now, it should probably be re-tested because ANA levels can change over time. And you certainly need a thorough workup to determine the cause of your neutropenia, especially since you work as a nurse and are exposed to sick patients. The easy bruising and red spots on your legs make me wonder if your platelet counts might be low also. It might also be a good idea to have a biopsy of the "dermatitis" on your hand to see if it's truly dermatitist or something else. You might have to keep pushing for answers, because sometimes doctors unfamiliar with lupus think all the strange symptoms patients have are unrelated, and don't recognize the pattern of an underlying disease.